News

Search by Keyword

Filter by Category

Preparing for Construction

Written by Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Preparing for a construction project in 2024? The time to initiate the process is now. Expanding an existing livestock facility or establishing a new one requires substantial time and effort even before groundbreaking. Whether you’re looking to augment your current feedlot, venture into beef confinement barns, or enhance feed storage facilities, here are ten crucial considerations

Read Post

Commencement of Construction for Blackshirt Feeders

Written by Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Commencement of Construction for Blackshirt Feeders   Haigler, Neb. (Monday, May 22, 2023) – Excavation equipment began construction on the site of what will become the headquarters for Blackshirt Feeders. Representation from Blackshirt Feeders LP, Settje Agri-Services and Engineering, and supporters were on hand for the occasion. Monday’s ground-breaking aligns with projections put forth to […]

Read Post

Settje Agri-Services Announces New Office Location

Written by Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Settje Agri-Services Announces New Office Location RAYMOND, Neb. (April 3, 2023) – Settje Agri-Services & Engineering has announced the expansion of a new office location in Brookings, South Dakota. The office will be located on the South Dakota State Research Campus grounds. The new office location will be staffed by current team member(s) of the […]

Read Post

Blackshirt Feeders LP and Settje Agri-Services & Engineering Announce Four-Phase Construction Plan of New Cattle Feedlot

Written by Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Blackshirt Feeders LP and Settje Agri-Services & Engineering Announce Four-Phase Construction Plan of New Cattle Feedlot HAIGLER, Neb. (March 13, 2023) – Blackshirt Feeders LP and Settje Agri-Services & Engineering have confirmed plans for the first four phases of construction of the state-of-the-art, 150,000 head beef cattle feedlot that will operate near Haigler, Nebraska. Recently, […]

Read Post

Sand Separation System Audits — Why, Who, and How?

Written by Andrew Wedel P.E. — Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Sand separation systems are a common feature of sand-bedded dairies. The mainstream acceptance of sand bedding brought about a refinement of separation systems, which has led to systems that produce bedding quality sand with minimal sand bypass. With potential sand recovery ranging from 90 to 95%+, a well-functioning separation system has the potential to greatly ease manure handling challenges associated with sand. On the other hand, a poorly functioning system—that is, say, a system operating at 75% recovery has the potential to cause significant frustration since the 25% of the sand being bypassed can may potentially settle in pipes, tanks, digesters, etc. Ultimately, the sand recovery should exceed the requirements of the downstream processes. How is your sand separation performing? Sand recovery? Sand cleanliness?

Read Post

Seven Key Advantages of Roller Compacted Concrete Over Conventional Open Lots

Written by Brock Vetick — Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Many considerations go into the design of a beef cattle feedlot: animal welfare, cost, manure management, and space utilization are a handful that may come to mind, among many others – but how often is the pen surface type considered? Most feedlots today consist of open soil-based pens to provide a home for feeder cattle where they can gain weight in a comfortable environment. While this industry-standard design has proven successful for many decades, advances are being made to improve feedlot pen surfaces – roller compacted concrete (RCC) leads the way as a key advancement, providing an improved concrete pen surface with many advantages

Read Post

Four Things to Know About Greenhouse Gas Footprint Assessments

Written by Brock Vetick — Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have come to the forefront of conversation over the past few years. We hear about emissions and sustainability almost everywhere these days – from Wall Street to Main Street and Walmart to Washington, D.C. – the conversation is all around us. Putting politics and personal beliefs around climate change aside, one thing that is certainly here to stay (and grow) is society’s interest in caring for the environment. Animal agriculture is committed to doing its part

Read Post

Blackshirt Feeders to Relocate New Feedlot Facility

Written by Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

RAYMOND, Neb. (July 15th, 2022) – For a variety of reasons to be explained, Blackshirt Feeders LP, with the assistance from Settje Agri-Services and Engineering, has recently submitted to Dundy County, a new conditional use permit application. This permit intends to move their previously permitted site in Northcentral Dundy County, to a new site in […]

Read Post

Dairy Manure Digestion and Dilution, Part 2: Manure Thickening — Myth, Reality, or Maybe?

Written by Andrew Wedel PE — Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Depending on the anaerobic digestion system chosen, the desired total solids content of AD influent ranges from between 6 and 12%. Assuming equal hydraulic retention times, lower values of influent TS result in larger tanks and higher operating expenses due to the need to heat water, which has no fuel value.  Last month in part 1 of the discussion on manure dilution and anaerobic digestion, we discussed sources of dilution, estimated quantities, and the effects of dilution on AD-influent total solids (TS) content. To review, it was shown how manure excreted at 12% TS could reasonably be diluted to 6% TS, assuming some typical volumes for dilution water added as part of the milking process

Read Post

Dairy Manure Digestion and Dilution: Part 1, The Impact

Written by Andrew Wedel PE — Settje Agri-Services & Engineering

Carbon intensity (CI) is the the amount of greenhouse gases produced throughout the lifecycle of a fuel per unit of energy. The low carbon fuel standard (LCFS) is a rule that was enacted to offset the CI of conventional fuels such as gasoline or diesel fuel. Renewable natural gas (RNG) produced by anaerobic digestion (AD) of dairy manure is used as motor fuel in places like California, resulting in very favorable premiums because the CI score of RNG from dairy manure is very low compared to conventional fuels. When dairy manure is used as fuel for the AD process, it is imperative the manure is in a form most conducive to maximizing gas production.

Read Post